 thisnamecantbetaken says: Of all the "well-intentioned" things people do to their pets, this has always been the worst IMO. I have seen cats suffer tremendous lifelong chronic pain, after this barbaric surgery. Some even having to be put down after botched surgery. Another side effect is, that if a cat is "a scratcher", amputating their toes often turns them into biters instead. (Please don't pull all their teeth either!! *LOL*) Anyway...the whole problem here lies not in that cats have claws, it lies in people not providing the appropriate environment for the cat . A simple scratching post and a bit of education is all you need, to have a happy healthy non-destructive cat WITH all it's toes (and teeth). Cats live 3-dimensional lives, as apposed to dogs, who live in two. Being able to climb is essential for the well-being of a cat. Cats have toes and claws for a reason!! Please don't mutilate your pet, but get smart instead. Your cat will thank you for it, and so will I.  Thanks TN, I had no idea this was such a common occurrence in America. Do the vets there simply ignore the medical facts about the consequences of de-clawing? I know some pets can be a handful but this brings the bigger issue into question. If you don't have the time / facilities to look after a pet, should you be allowed one? Never ever declaw. Unless of course you are a simple-minded sadist, in which case try pulling out your own fingernails. It's more than just the pulling of fingernails. Imagine having the whole last JOINT of your fingers and toes amputated and then having to walk on the stumps? This is a quite a common practice in the US jonhatespigeons, but conscientious vets etc are speaking out against this practice. It should simply be outlawed IMO, as with ear- and tail-cropping, which is also illegal in many European countries. It doesn't take long to teach a cat to use a scratching post. Use a toy to entice the cat to jump on the post and it will in NO time realise the joy of stretching and unsheathing it's precious talons THERE and no where else. :o) Cats also have little scent glands between their toes that tell... I have one large scratching post (with a built in cat hammock etc because I spoil them. *LOL*), 5 cats (often more) and 90 fully intact cat toes and claws in my house and ALL my furniture is 100% intact. Recently, I stopped a woman from having her cat declawed! She had no idea what all was involved. I agree this should be outlawed. My cat thinks a scratching post is "beneath her," but she does her scratching outside on a tree. TN, hat's off that you got all of your cats to cooperate. You are my hero of the day, Dorine! Yay! Lucky cat!! Whew! Close call, eh?  When ever I bring a cat or kitten home, the first thing I do is show it where the litterbox is and then I "hang" it on the scratching post a few times. I mean, I lift it up and sort of let it grab on and hang onto the post. Then I play a while with a wand or something. It only takes a few times before the cat "gets it" and that's that. My cats all ADORE their scratching environment. I have had many, many cats and foster cats pass through my doors and I have never had any problems. A drop of Valerian or a sprinkle of catnip on the post does wonders too. Yups! You're definitely my hero of the day, Dorine. Thank you. Thanks, TN, you made my day! This is great to know! Always learning at the Clip! While I am against declawing, not all cats respond to the a scratching pad or post. I have friends who have tried it, with the result being ruined furniture. Perhaps their training method was lacking, however, cats (and I love them so), do have a will of their own ... Why is declawing prevalent in America? I think the culprit is that the appearance of things is more important than well-being. I think you're right, zizzy. Many people here are caught up in appearances. I heard Martha Stewart talking about declawing. She has silk furniture. Said she'd never declaw, you can always replace furniture. Gotta love her. Wow, i don't even like cats but I really had no idea this is what declawing was like for them. Good Clip! I have never declawed any of my kitties. If you want to declaw your pets perhaps you should consider goldfish! www.softpaws.com I got these for my cat...she's a 'kneader' and has not only damaged furniture, but my clothes as well. I HIGHLY recommend Soft Paws!!!! Great clip, TN. When my first kitty moved in with me, I was looking for a vet to declawer. I found an add in the local phonebook for a cat-only clinic and noticed that in their ad, they said that they will not do any declawings. My first thought that - being a cat-only clinic, they were crazy to be giving up the kind of money they could make because of how popular declawing is (and it was even moreso at the time.) Then it hit me that <i>they were going to lose a *lot* of money by refusing to do declawings</i>, and that if they were willing to give up all that money, there had to be a reason for it, and the only reason I could think of was that declawing a cat must not be very good for it. It's been al... There's an old phrase "A pet is not just for Christmas" Referring to the huge number of kittens and puppies bought for kids who want a living soft toy, but simply don't want to spend time looking after them. Parents and all potential pet owners need to realise that if you take on responsibility for a little life, it is just that... a life! If you don't want your furniture or clothes to be scratched or covered in hair.... DON'T GET A CAT or DOG!!!!! Not exactly rocket science. A pet is not just for Christmas.... if you cut it right, there may be some left for boxing day!!!!!! |
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